University of Graz acquires literary estate of Dževad Karahasan

The Franz Nabl Institute for Literary Research at the University of Graz has acquired the literary estate of Dževad Karahasan, a prominent Bosnian and European writer who passed away in Graz on May 19, 2023.

The collection includes handwritten notes, typed early versions of his novel ‘Istočni diwan’, and a variety of publications, many of which are in the Bosnian language. Karahasan, born in 1953, had a deep connection to Graz, having served as a writer-in-residence there in 1997.

The acquisition has drawn reactions in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Vahidina Preljević, a literary historian at the University of Sarajevo, expressed mixed emotions regarding the news. While relieved that the estate will receive professional institutional care, he criticized the inability of domestic institutions to preserve such cultural heritage, citing a lack of political awareness and funding for culture in the region.